Gukesh announces major changes to rediscover form, speaks honestly on social media: 'My performance has been...'

Chess world champion D Gukesh of India has decided to pull out of some crucial tournaments in the next few months in his attempt to rediscover his form before the next World Chess Championship match, he revealed on Tuesday. Gukesh, who became the youngest world champion in 2024 at 18, has been struggling for form for over a year.

The 19-year-old Gukesh, who hails from Chennai, has not won any major tournament since beating former world champion Ding Liren in the World Chess championship match over 15 months ago. Earlier this month, Gukesh finished joint-last at the Prague Chess Masters with a score of 3.5/9.

The matter has been made worse by former world champions Garry Kasparov and Anatoly Karpov, who have questioned Gukesh's credentials and hailed Magnus Carlsen as the 'last real' champion.

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Gukesh decides to shift focus to training

Gukesh will be needed to defend his world title later this year against the winner of the ongoing Fide Candidates 2026. Targeting that, the Indian teenager has decided to pull out of some big tournaments to focus more on training at home.

Taking to X (formerly Twitter) on Tuesday, Gukesh said that he will only participate in the Grand Chess Tour's Rapid & Blitz tournaments in Warsaw and Zagreb in 2026 instead of the full tour. Gukesh is set to miss the Superbet Chess Classic Romania in May and the Sinquefield Cup in August.

Explaining the reason for his withdrawal from Classical tournaments, Gukesh said that he wants to compete with "less intensity" and "skip" spending a long time away from home.

"My performance in the last few events has been quite disappointing, not just for me, but for all of you who support me," Gukesh wrote on X. "In order to find my best form my team and I have decided that I should compete with slightly less intensity over the next few months. Consequently, we feel it is in my best interest to skip long events away from home to allow for more dedicated training time.

"With this in mind, I approached the Grand Chess Tour organizers and asked to play only two European Rapid & Blitz events. They were very supportive and understanding, and we agreed that I would participate in the Rapid & Blitz tournaments in Warsaw and Zagreb this year. I’m very grateful for their support. Respectfully, I am not planning to play any other events during the Grand Chess Tour schedule and will certainly be back for the full Grand Chess Tour in the future."

Gukesh, however, may still take part in Norway Chess in May-June, where he is expected to face off against five-time world champion Carlsen.